Charmed: The Halliwell Four
by ClearwaterInnocence
Summary: The Power of Three has now been upped to the Power of Four. Meet Penelope, Penny, Halliwell, the fourth and youngest of the Halliwell sisters. When Penny's sudden powers are unlocked after her sister Phoebe's long waiting return home, things start to change. And she's not just talking about the sudden magical powers. She's also talking about the new man who's moved in next door.
1. Something Wicca This Way Comes

Something Wicca This Way Comes:

In the late 1600's, during a time known as 'the Salem Witch Trials', a child was born. This child was female but was given an amazing gift despite being born to mortals. She was given the gift of magic, a rare but beautiful gift for those with previously no magical blood in their veins. Although 'magic users' or 'witches' were thought of as evil, this child grew up to be a good witch. She took it upon herself to protect the innocent, those she could with her powers. She hid them from everyone although it was clearly difficult to do so.

This child, named Melinda Warren, had four main gifts she discovered over time, getting stronger with each passing day. Her first gift was the power of premonition, the sight power. It gave her the ability to touch something and suggestively see the future tied to what she touched. She often saw pain or death and decided to try stopping what she knew was coming. The second gift was time. At first, if she was nervous, she was able to freeze time briefly for a few seconds, usually allowing herself to get away from danger. Her third gift was being telekinetic, about to move things with the mind. There was no physical touching necessary. Her fourth power was the elements. Water, fire, earth, and air, she was able to control. Some witches can control the elements but nobody had managed to use all four with some grace and ease as she did, making it a natural gift given by magic birthright.

Melinda grew but was soon hated by her fellow townspeople and not because of her hidden magical secrete. She was hated because she had a child out of wedlock, looked down horribly in these times compared to better times of our own. Her child was a daughter and Melinda knew her child had been given her gift of magic. She could feel it in her very bones, this child would be great, and for true it would be.

Melinda decided to start a book. During this time, it was just a few pieces of parchment tied together explaining of her time as a witch and about the different creatures, demons, she had came across. She wrote spells she created, in hopes that it would help future generations of the Warren line. In our era, the book had grown, now called 'The Book of Shadows', and it well protected by the Warren bloodline. It was thick enough it was almost impossible to carry, every generation would write a new spell or demon they had come across for they knew that future generations would need all the help they could get.

Back to Melinda, her daughter was barely two years old when Melinda fell in love with a young man who seemed to love both her and her daughter. But barely months later, she was thrown into jail accused of witchcraft because of him. He betrayed her. He wasn't a real man after all, not a mortal one at least. This man was a demon sent to capture her powers. That was his ability. If a power was used against him, he was able to absorb it, to use it as his own.

Angry and hurt, she masked her pain by her anger, angrily throwing the locket he had given her at his feet. He thought nothing of it, until she shouted a spell, a spell that would forever trap him inside the locket unless someone in her bloodline would open it. She hid it in the hay stacked against the prison wall. Even if someone found it soon, it would be thought of as nothing more than a petty trinket.

After an unfair trial due to her wedlock, her punishment was a burning at the stake. Although Melinda could have easily escaped, she did not. If she did, then she would prove their claims right and then they would go after her daughter.

"Any last words?" her prosecuted demanded, holding a torch. Fire had always been a friend to her, but this time, she knew she would have to let it do it's job and become her enemy. That was when Melinda had her final premonition. She saw four girls, in the future from their weird clothing (modern clothes to us), doing incredible things. They took out demons and fought to protect the innocence, all while staying together, like true sisters should. And although she didn't know how, she knew these girls were her descendants, the descendants of her daughter.

So she opened her mouth and uttered her last words, the words of a prophecy written down in the Book of Shadows by her daughter when she was old enough to remember in a past premonition. She said:

_ "You may kill me, but you cannot kill my kind._

_ With each generation, the Warren line will grow stronger and stronger_

_ Culminating in the arrival of four sisters._

_ Together, these four sisters will be the most powers witches the world has ever known._

_ They will be good witches and vanquish all kinds of evil._

_ They will be known as the Charmed Ones."_

With a roar of anger, the prosecuted threw the flamed torch onto the wood and Melinda's shrieks were heard all throughout town as the fire burned her alive. Melinda's daughter grew, angered at the townspeople for taking her mother away from her. Melinda was one of the last to be burned before the witch trials were over. Melinda's daughter, Prudence, in an attempt to make her mother proud, followed her mother's life by becoming a good witch, helping the innocence in all ways that she could, making the book of shadows bigger by writing her own experiences into it.

Melinda's daughter, Prudence, later died leaving behind children and grandchildren. Time went by and the prophecy of their great ancestor Melinda was explained to every new generations of witches. Centuries went by and nearly three hundred years passed before a woman named 'Patricia Halliwell' was born. Patricia was the descendent of Melinda, the last name having changed over the centuries, although their blood still carried the magic. It was discovered that while the females inherited the magic of their mothers before them, the boys were unable to. It wasn't discovered why, it was just a genetic fact. If a child born in the Warren line were girls, they would be gifted with magic while the boys would not be.

Patricia met a mortal man named Victor Bennett and together, they had four children, four female _charmed _children. Patricia unknowingly became the mother of the charmed ones. She only discovered this after giving birth to her fourth daughter in a row.

Her eldest daughter she named Prudence, after the child of Melinda in the stories her mother told her as a child. Prudence, Prue for short, later discovered her telekinetic powers. The second child was named Piper, Piper had the ability to freeze time, and like all the others, could freeze anything in the room except for good witches. The third child was named Phoebe, who was the only daughter born of the family in the house passed through the generations in their family. As she gave birth, her unborn daughter gave Patricia a premonition. It was of the future, probably just over twenty years from now. She could see four beautiful women surrounding her, all with wide smiles and laughing. Although they were even more beautiful and mature, she could see the childlike features of her children in two of the women. So she knew she would have nothing to worry about, she knew her children would grow up to adulthood as beautiful and confident women. She had nothing to worry about other then who the two other girls were. Barely a year later, she discovered one of the girls was her fourth daughter, a daughter she named after her mother. She named her youngest daughter to Victor; Penelope Halliwell, Penny for short.

The last women in the future ended up being her fifth and final daughter, who she birthed through by another man. Unable to care for her, because of laws out of her control, she was forced to give her youngest daughter to a church, hoping that she would find happiness with another family. Her only wish for the nun she gave her to, was to name the child something that started with a P.

When Patricia died, Prue was seven years old and Penny was just under a year. Their Gram, as they called Penelope, who raised them after that, knew that the girls would no longer be safe, already gaining practice in their magic. So she was forced to bind their powers and as the years passed, the daughters were forced to forget their abilities, believing it as nothing more than a childlike game as they could no longer do the things they once did.

The girls grew up unaware of their magical heritage outside of childhood stories, fairy tales, if you will, that Gram would tell them; unaware of the fifth sister, a half-sister, they had out there in the world growing up with strangers. But like all things, it comes to an end. When the youngest just celebrated her twenty first birthday a few weeks ago, Gram died due to illness and the sisters moved away from each other. But months passed and they realized that no one could afford their apartments and send money to pay the house bills. The house was to valuable, it was where they grew up, where generations of their family had lived for centuries, their great grandparents built the house. There was to much history and emotion, there no possible way that either of the four girls could give the house to strangers, so they moved into the old Victorian home.

First Piper moved into her old bedroom. The second to arrive was Prue only a week later. She was followed weeks later by me, my name is Penny and I'm the youngest Halliwell sister. And I had no idea that my normal everyday life was going to come to an end. I was twenty one and an old family history I did not know about was awakened in our blood, the bounding spell undone now that Gram was dead and the four of us were to become together, to become one.

Most people inherit money or jewels or houses or historical objects. Did we get that? We got a house and magic we never knew existed. Although I guess I should be grateful. After all, I wouldn't be the same person I was today if I didn't have my magic and had all those experiences.

Goodbye normality, and hello extraordinary.

This is my story, the story of the fourth Halliwell sister.

"Prue? Penny?" I heard one of my middle sisters come in through the back door. Her name was Piper and she was twenty four, she had long brown hair, tan skin and brown eyes. My eldest sister, Prue, twenty six, stood on a ladder trying to fix the chandelier. Prue had short dark black hair, a slightly darker skin tone, and brown eyes. I sat on the couch studying for my latest Sociology test as I was in my last year of college after working my butt off to get their earlier than others my age. I was twenty one, and had my shoulder length brownish reddish brown hair in a high loose ponytail. My dark brown eyes peeked out from my thin blue framed reading glasses perched on the tip of my nose.

"In here, working on the chandelier!" Prue called. Prue worked at this auction house, selling old artifacts that people brought in.

"And I'm studying," I called, taking a bite from my chocolate bar. Chocolate was sort of a weakness for me, I loved the stuff and I never got fat or had pimples from it or anything so I ate what I could.

"Sorry, I'm late." Piper said, rushing in, putting her purse on the table. Piper was a chef and a really good one. Her cooking was always a first choice I would take. I had a third sister, Phoebe, but she was currently living in New York and we lived in San Francisco. I wasn't sure if she was ever coming home, I was closest to her as we were the two youngest of the household filled with girls.

"What else is new?" Prue exaggeratedly rolled her eyes. I, however, was working on being a social worker, helping abused and unwanted kids get away from horrible situations and better homes where they would be loved. Prue continued with her speech, "Piper, I would have been here to meet the electrician myself but you know I can't leave the museum until six. I didn't even have time to change.

"I could have stayed." I muttered but I knew they didn't trust me in the house alone. One wild party when I was nineteen that ended up with the cops breaking it up, me being drunk and still fully clothed but sleeping in the bath tub, and nobody trusted me to stay home alone again.

"I just didn't realize how long I was in China town." Piper explained herself. "Did Jeremy call?" Jeremy was her latest boyfriend for the past like, six months. He was alright, although I kept feeling like something was off about him. I always pushed it off, thinking of my own past experiences with boys. They were never the greatest, always abusive, cheaters, slobs, or jerks. I always gave them the boot after a first hit. I knew how to defend myself if I had to. One thing I refused to become was a victim, I was always strong willed despite my small statute as I was born premature.

I answered this time, "No, but I did answer the door an hour ago and he sent roses and a package." I said, pointing them out on the table against the wall, glancing up from my book.

"What were you doing in Chinatown? I thought you had an interview in North Beach." Prue said confused, climbing off the ladder. I took off my glasses, curious about the answer.

"I did but I went to Young Lee market after my interview to get the ingredients for the audition recipe tomorrow." Piper explained.

"Did you get me something?" I asked hopeful.

Piper rolled her eyes, "I can't get you something every time I leave the house."

I pouted, "I know but it never stops me from hoping." I pushed my glasses onto my nose.

"Did the wolf gang punk knock off hire you, yet?" Prue asked, wiping her hands off on her black pants.

"Not yet, but this could possibly get me in." she said. I climbed up and she swatted my hand away when I tried going through the bag. "None for you, dinner will be later."

"But I'm hungry now." I pouted, finishing my chocolate bar. I know what you think, I'm a fatty, right? Not at all, I'm actually underweight for my age and I'm quite petite actually. I just love to eat plus I have a high metabolism, something my sister's always scowled at me for although they never held it against me, never scorned me or anything except for a brief few weeks when I was fourteen.

"Oh my god, I don't believe it." Piper explained, looking down at a familiar wooden board sitting next to my textbook I had set down. "Tell me that's not our old spirit board." The board was something we used to play with when we were little. Every Halloween, Phoebe and I would have fun scaring the other neighborhood kids by making it look like it was moving itself. The funniest was when we would spell 'kill' and then a kid would run screaming.

"Yeah, I found it in the basement when I was looking for the circuit tester." Prue explained.

"You mean I tripped over it in the dark." I corrected, having bruised my knee from that fall.

Piper picked it up and read the inscription written in black marker on the back, still amazingly preserved despite all the time it spent down there. The last time I saw it was when I was fourteen and Phoebe and I were grounded from scaring one of the girls from class who never stepped near our house again. _"To my four beautiful girls, may this give you the light to find the shadows. The power of four will set you free, love mom. _We never did figure out what that description meant."

"I like to think it has a hidden message into it we'll figure out what of these days." I stated, sitting myself on the arm of the couch.

"I still suggest we send it to Phoebe, the girl is so dark, maybe a little light will help." Prue suggested since we've found it but I refuse to have it leave the house. It was like a childhood toy with great memories, plus it had mom's words written on it.

"You're always so hard on her." Piper said, looking almost cautious, like she had something to say.

"Piper, the girl has no vision, no sense of the future." Prue reasoned.

"She just hasn't figured hers out yet." I defended my sister.

"And she'll never figure hers out." Prue scowled.

"I really think Phoebe's coming around." Piper said, looking as cautious as the rabbit in my eighth grade class.

"Well as long as she doesn't come around here, I guess that's good news." Prue said. I rolled my eyes and absent-mindly traced a pattern over my palm, a pattern of three triangles interlocked.

On the other side of town, two certain police officers stood outside an apartment building. "Another female dead, right? Mid to late twenties?" Andy asked as he arrived on the scene.

"I've been paging you for over an hour, Trudeau, where have you been?" Darryl pushed on, using the other Officer's last name.

"Checking out a lead." Was Andy's response.

"What lead?" Darryl scoffed as others were still going over the crime scene.

"One that didn't go anywhere." He admitted.

Darryl narrowed his eyes, "You're avoiding my question."

"Because you don't want to know that I went to an occult shop." Andy stated.

Darryl scowled, "You hate me, don't you? You wanna see me suffer."

"I wanna solve these murders." Andy corrected. "Someone's after witches."

"Women," Darryl corrected.

Andy shook her head and nodded at the house, "That woman up there. I bet she was killed with an athame."

"Wrong, double edge steel knife." Darryl smirked.

"Right, that's an athame." Andy corrected and Darryl scowled. "It's a ceremonial tool. Witch's use them to direct energy."

"That women didn't direct jack. She was stabbed, plain and simple." Darryl stated.

"Was she found in an altar?" Andy asked, unconcerned with his partner's disbelief.

"Yes." Darryl admitted.

"Were there carvings on that altar?" Andy continued.

Darryl sighed and shook his head, used to his partners antics by now, "Just do me a favor. Don't even follow a lead without checking with me first."

"You wanna go to occult shops?" Andy asked, knowing that was the last thing the other would want to do.

Darryl rolled his eyes, "Get to work, okay?"

Then a man showed up waving a microphone in their faces followed by a camera man, "Jeremy Burns, San Francisco Chronicle, you care to comment?"

"A woman was stabbed, plain and simple." Andy repeated Darryl's earlier words.

"Well that's the third one in three weeks." Jeremy Burns tried to get more information but Andy walked off.

In Halliwell manor, Prue was walking back into the room from the basement. I was sitting on the couch, flipping channels on the TV after getting a headache from the books. So I decided to take a…small break. I worked my butt off for nearly five years, some of it in high school; I think I deserved a break by now. I stopped on some news channel, looking up when Prue showed up.

"I don't get it." Prue said annoyed. "I have checked everything, there's no reason why the chandelier should not be working."

"Maybe we should just call a handyman." I suggested. Prue mad was not a good Prue.

"It's tempting." Prue answered me, clearly irritated with the lack of process she was making on the light.

Piper changed the conversation, "You know how we've been talking about what to do with the spare room? I think you're right, we do need a roommate." Piper had been against it a few weeks ago so why the change now? The manor had four bedrooms and a bathroom upstairs and another door that led to the locked attic. Prue slept in the master bedroom where our parents and later Gram used to sleep. Piper and I slept in our childhood bedrooms. Phoebe's old room was currently empty, everything but her clothes was still the same as before.

I didn't know how I felt about some stranger outside the family moving into the house. It had been just in the family for generations, it felt wrong for someone without Halliwell blood to be living here.

Prue shrugged, "We can always rent the room at a reduced rate in exchange for some help around the house." I blew a strand of hair out of my face. You know what, if it got me out of doing dishes twice a week, I was all up for it now.

"Phoebe's good with a wrench." Piper stated.

I perked up, "Did you mention Phoebe?" I would never admit it but I did always feel closer to Phoebe. Who knows, maybe it was just because we were the two youngest of the household.

"Phoebe lives in New York." Prue dismissed the idea.

"Not anymore." Piper muttered.

I blinked, "Did you say what I think you said?"

"…Maayyybbbee." Piper looked away and I knew what was coming next: the explosion of Prue.

"You've got to be kidding me!" Prue exclaimed.

"Phoebe's moving back in!" I squealed, acting more girly than usual. I was usually the tom boyish of my three other sisters; like I preferred sports to shopping although I wasn't opposed to a good shopping trip every now and then.

Piper and Prue kept arguing, "I could hardly say no. It's her house too. Grams left it to all four of us."

"Yeah, months ago and we haven't seen or spoken to her since." Prue stated.

"We were emailing last week." I told her. "But she didn't bother telling me of her planning to move in,"

"She said I should tell you, she knew you would at least be happy about it." Piper said, flashing a glance at Prue.

"But I'm still mad at her." Prue stated.

"Can't you get over it." I begged her. Prue and Phoebe fought over everything all the time. "She's our sister, the third of the four Halliwell sisters."

"I don't care, she should have thought of that months ago." Prue scowled, setting aside the set ladder she had been using earlier.

Piper tried to explain her reasoning, "But she has nowhere else to go. She lost her job, she's in debt."

I nodded, crossing my arms, hopping off the couch, "Well that decides it then, she has to move back home. Sister's don't leave sister's behind." I always had this thing about family, wanting our family to be close. But then again, we were sisters, and sisters were known to fight but did they have to fight so much that we were torn apart? Oh how I wish we were in the simple things when I was five and the worse fights was over a doll or the last piece of cake.

"This doesn't decide anything." Prue protested, she pointed her finger at me. "I know Penny obviously didn't know anything about this but how long have you known?" she glared at Piper. I pulled off my glasses, figuring I wasn't going to get anymore studying done tonight. Piper was always the more soft spoken Halliwell sister considering she was a middle sister, never knowing who to side with.

"A couple of day, maybe a week…or two." Piper admitted.

"When does she get here?" I asked excited, setting my glasses on the side table. Maybe I had time to get her room ready.

Then the front door swung open, maybe me jump surprised and when the whole household was home and it was dark, a swinging front door was never a good sign. But in walked the third of the four Halliwell sisters, Phoebe. Phoebe with her short light brown hair, a shade identical to my own, a skin tone a little darker, but eyes were the same shade of brown all four of us shared. "Surprise! I found the hide a key!" Phoebe cheered, talking about the key I once hid in the flower pot next to the door when I would keep forgetting mine in my teenage years.

"Phoebe!" I cheered, rushing into her awaiting arms. She was about the same height as me, give or take an inch. I was always a short kid, I finally grew to my full height after my twentieth birthday, catching up with my sister's.

"It's so good to see you, isn't it Prue?" Piper said meaningful, giving Prue this look that said 'you better say something nice'. It was her mom look. Prue may have helped raise up being the oldest, but Piper always had this way about her that made me think she would be a great mom someday. She just needed a guy that wasn't a total jerk.

"I'm speechless." Prue said, face annoyed but at least she hadn't said anything cruel yet. Hopefully, it would stay this way, no fights. The last time all four of us got into an argument, it was scary. I was sixteen and I can't even remember what it was about, all I remember was a bunch of screaming and crying and doors slamming and one sister, Phoebe, leaving for a few days. Since then our fights have always been kept to two people.

A car horn beeped outside, reminding Phoebe of the cab she had left. "I'll get it." Piper said, grabbing the wrong purse off the counter. Good thing my purse was on the couch with the rest of my stuff.

"Piper, that's my purse!" Prue shouted after her as she walked to the door.

"Thanks, I'll pay you back." Phoebe said. I knew she looked up to Prue, always subconsciously looking for her acceptance. I think we all did at one point or the other, just…Phoebe never actually reached it.

"Is that all you brought?" Prue asked, nodding to the single suitcase Phoebe had at her side.

"That's all I own, and a bike." Phoebe admitted with an almost sad subconscious smile.

"Well I can bring it up to you room." I suggested. Like Phoebe wanted Prue's acceptance, I wanted Phoebe's.

Phoebe declined, tugging on a loose strand of hair that had fallen back into my face, "Nah, it's one bag. I can get it myself. Besides, I see you're studying, still in school?" she asked me, nodding at the stacks of different psychology books.

I nodded eagerly, always happy to talk about my goal, "Yeah, it's my last year so I'll be graduating soon enough."

"We're not selling Gram's house." Prue interrupted our 'catch up' moment. I should have known it wouldn't last…at all.

"Is that why you think I came back?" Phoebe asked in disbelief. Phoebe had jokingly suggested it after the funeral and the reading of the will but I could tell she didn't really mean it. After all, this house had as many memories to her as it did for all of us. This was the house we grew up in; heck, I learned to walk and cried over my first ex-boyfriend in this house.

Prue shook her head, "Look, the only reason Piper, Penny, and I gave up our apartments and moved back here was because this house has been in our family for generations."

"No history lesson needed, I grew up here too." Phoebe scowled. We have all heard the stories of this house, it being incorporated into our childhood bedtime stories. "Can we talk about what's really bothering you?" I wasn't even sure why they were fighting. It was always about something when they got together…Prue was the responsible one and Phoebe couldn't even get a job for more than a few weeks.

"I'm still furious with you." Prue said darkly.

Phoebe rolled her eyes, "So you'd rather have a tense reunion filled with boring chitchat and unimportant small talk?" she asked.

"No, but otherwise we won't have anything to talk about."

"I never touched Rodger."

I shook my head, "Come on, this fight is about another boy?" I asked in disbelief. A boy was no reason to break up sisters, girls before jocks, right? Or something like that.


	2. The Wiccan Power?

The Wiccan Power? :

"You wouldn't understand, you've never been in actual love." Prue dismissed.

I put a hand on my chest, over my heart, "Ouch, you wound me so." I scowled, slouching to sit on the couch, propping my feet on the table to watch the show. Who cares if I've never been in love before? I've had a few boyfriends, some I thought I could see myself marrying someday, but they were gone just as easily as they came.

"Don't talk to her like that." Phoebe protested. "I know you think I touched Rodger because that's what that Armani-wearing, Chardonnay-slugging trust funder told you,"

"Hey, I have a great idea-" Piper interrupted, coming in.

"What's that, Piper?" I asked, hoping this fight would end.

"How about I make a fabulous reunion dinner?" Piper said with hopeful excitement.

"That sounds exciting." I smiled brightly, mouthwatering at the thought of my next upcoming meal.

Prue, "I'm not hungry."

Phoebe, "I ate on the bus."

"Okay, we'll try the group hug later." Piper suggested as the others left.

I patted her back, "Well I think a nice meal later on will be perfect reunion. We'll make them show up, at least to sit at the table. And nobody can resist your cooking for long."

Piper nodded, patting my hand on her shoulder, "You're sweet, I think I'll just…go to the kitchen." Piper left me alone in the living room. I sighed and started gathering my books. I was done for the night.

"Piper! You're boyfriends on TV!" I shouted, eating my small dinner of my own handmade sandwich. Piper came in as Phoebe did.

"What's happening?" Piper asked. I pouted when I noticed she give Phoebe a tray of her own made food.

"This woman a few streets over got stabbed…she's dead." I shrugged. It was San Francisco; it wasn't that strange an occurrence.

"So you mean she got whacked." Phoebe corrected, falling into the seat next to me.

"Whacked?" Piper repeated, leaning on the back of the couch.

I shook my head, half eaten food still in my mouth, "It's official Phoebe, you've been in New York far too long."

Phoebe shrugged, "Maybe I have, maybe I haven't. Anyway, why didn't anyone tell Prue I was coming?"

I swallowed my food, "In my offense, I didn't know you were coming tell a few seconds before you walked through the door." We looked up at Piper behind us.

Piper scoffed. "I couldn't risk her changing the locks. Besides, I think Phoebe should have told her instead of me."

"Kind of hard when she deletes all the emails Phoebe sent her." I finished my sandwich, setting the plate aside for later.

"Besides, it's hard to talk to her, since she's always acts like a mother would." Phoebe sighed.

"But that's not her fault." Piper stated. "She practically had to sacrifice…"

"Her own childhood to raise us." The three finished. Penny hated the fact that Prue used the 'I used to help change your diapers' cards. Too bad she wasn't already potty trained when mom died. Heck, she was just learning how to walk when it happened.

"We're lucky she was so responsible." Piper said. "The three of us had it easy. All we had to do was be there."

I scoffed, "My own advanced schoolwork wasn't easy." I protested. I spent a lot of having sleepless nights with plenty of coffee cups.

Phoebe shook her head, "The point is I don't need a mom anymore, I need a sister."

"Another sister, what we all need." I moaned. I couldn't imagine trying to squeeze a fifth sister into this house. there was a knock in the doorway next to the stairs. Prue stood there, shifting awkwardly on her feet.

"I uh…put a blanket, in your room. It is the coldest room in the house." Prue said. No matter how mad she was at Phoebe, the girl was still her younger sister and it was her job to protect her. Rather from an intruder or the cold, just like it was her job to protect all three of the girls standing/sitting at the couch.

Phoebe nodded, "Thanks." She said, honestly grateful for an older sister that actually seemed to care, despite all their fights. Prue nodded and left back upstairs where I assumed she was heading to her own room, the master room.

"That wasn't so bad." I decided, standing up and taking my plate to the sink in the kitchen.

A few streets over in the murdered woman's apartment, Officers Darryl and Andy stood, taken in the scene. They were trying to find clues or evidence of who had stabbed the blonde haired woman dead. "It's the same tattoo as the other two victims." Andy said, observing a tattoo on the victim's neck. It looked like a circle with three triangles interlocking.

"So, the murderer is killing occults?" Darryl asked.

Andy shook his head, having another theory, "No, the murderer's on a witch hunt."

Darryl scoffed, "Oh, yeah, he's five to eight years old and he lives in Salem." Darryl shook his head and gestured to the rest of the room. "Look around, Trudeau; pentagrams, altars, offerings, all the tools of a freak fest."

"They call them Sabbaths which is hardly a freak fest." Andy corrected. "She was a solitary practitioner. She practiced her craft alone." Darryl obviously didn't seem to believe it. "Let me ask you something, Morris (losing his partner's last name). Do you believe in UFO's?"

"Hell no," Darryl said immediately.

"Neither do I, but do you think other people believe in them?" Andy continued with his theory.

"Yes, but I think they're crazy." Darryl said, not trying to hide what he thought was true.

Andy nodded and grinned, "Well then, why can't you believe that there are people who believe they are witches?"

Daryl shook his head. UFO's were one thing, witches were something completely different. "Look, all I know is if you don't stop talking about witches, I'm gonna start questioning you." A hairless pink cat jumped onto the couch meowing. She apparently belonged to the now dead owner. Her name, as it said on the back of the strange shaped collar, was Kit. Andy went to pet her, "I'd stay away from that cat, Trudeau. It's been clawing the crap out of everybody. See you at the car." He turned and left Andy in the living room of the apartment. Andy glanced down at the cat's collar and realized it was the same as the woman's tattoo.

"The spirit of four will set you free?" I muttered, tracing the words of the spirit board. It was the next day and after a good night's rest I was up and ready for the day. Actually, I woke up three times because someone was moving in next door. By morning, all their stuff would be moved from the huge truck to somewhere in the house I would probably never step in again. It used to belong to my friend and her parents but when we were ten…her parents were unexplainable killed and she was sent to her aunt in some far off place in the country. Anyway, right now it was the middle of the night and storming so we'd all pretty much given up on sleep for the night.

"When did you meet Jeremy?" Phoebe asked. I was never one for the boyfriend talk, always feeling awkward considering I never actually had anything considered serious.

"About six months ago," Piper said and I muttered with her. Piper glared, not actually being mean but continued on, "Right before Grams died. We met in the hospital cafeteria the day Grams was admitted. He was covering a story and I was bawling over a bagel. So, he handed me a napkin."

"How romantic," Phoebe laughed.

"As a matter of fact, it was. The napkin had his phone number on it." Piper admitted as I put the spirit board down and started playing with the pointer.

I shook my head, my slightly curled brown hair falling around my face, "I go to the bathroom for ten minutes and she hooks herself a guy." Why couldn't that have been me? I didn't want Jeremy and I was happy Piper found someone she seemed to really like, but I've never actually had anyone I would go to without wondering if they would turn me away or I'd find out they were cheating on me when a girl half-dressed would come stumbling out of the bedroom, scowling at the interrupting. They always seemed to be either dark exotic beauties or bleach blonde girls who's boobs were falling out her shirt.

"Stop playing with the pointer." Piper swatted at my hand.

"Right, how else are we supposed to _speak beyond the grave." _I said in my best creepy scary voice, letting go of the pointer and wiggling my fingers at her.

Piper rolled her eyes but stood up, "More popcorn?" she started heading to the kitchen.

"Yes please." I called after her.

"Ohmigod, Piper!" Phoebe called, suddenly panicked. I looked over to her surprised, "What?"

Phoebe nodded at the spirit board harmlessly sitting on the table, "It's moving, the pointer was moving by itself."

I shook my head, "Phoebe, we used to play that trick all the time. You can't get me with that one." I looked down at it just in time to see the pointer move by itself to the 'T'. I shrieked, eyes wide with shock as I jumped back, sending my chair slamming to the ground. Piper came in from the kitchen and Prue ran down the stairs having heard my shriek.

"What did you guys do now?" Prue asked, seeing we were fine, or at least unharmed and no stranger had broken in.

"Me? I didn't do anything." Piper said offended.

"You…you won't believe it." I shook my head, trying to get over what I just saw. I mean, I know my bookshelf is filled with magic and fantasy books but this kind of magic, the real actual happening kind, wasn't supposed to actually exist. But then again, pointers didn't move on themselves.

Phoebe quickly explained, breathing hard, "The pointer on the spirit board. It moved on its own." Piper and Prue looked at her, clearly not believe it. I wouldn't either if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes. After all, they were our favorite, uh, victims. "I'm serious, it spelt 'A' 'T'."

"But what does AT mean? At what?" I asked, tugging on a curl of my hair, finally getting my brain on track and not panicking.

"Well, did you push it?" Piper suggested and Phoebe denied it.

"You used to always push the pointer or Penny would distract us while you moved it." Prue scowled, obviously clearly remembering our old tricks as we all surrounded the spirit board on the table.

"This isn't a trick this time!" I protested. "Phoebe wasn't even touching it. I know I'm not going crazy here!"

"It did it again!" Phoebe shrieked. I quickly looked down but was disappointed to see it was still on T and Prue voiced this. Phoebe shook her head, looking honest as she said, "I swear it moved." I glanced down, gasping as it suddenly moved.

"What's it saying?" I whispered, seeing it moved to 'I'. All four sisters stared down at the spirit board in doubts, disbelief, and shock.

"I told you I wasn't touching it." Phoebe said, grabbing a spare envelope off the hall table and my pen I had left behind. She started writing on the back. Phoebe showed us what she had written: ATTIC.

I tilted my head, "What could be in the attic?" I asked. This house had four floors: a basement, a first floor, a second floor, and an attic. There was a suddenly loud clap of thunder and the power shut off. I shrieked, grabbing onto Prue who was closest. She calmly patted my back. I had a childhood fear of being afraid of the dark. I was fine with the lights off but when I couldn't put them back on, I panicked.

Prue pulled me after Phoebe, Piper following us as we headed up to the stairs to the attic. "We've lived in this house for months and we know that the attic door is locked. It won't open." Piper said. I've only been in the attic once when I was ten but Gram had found me. I had seen a giant book and was about to open it when she dragged me out, telling me never to go back in there. Because I loved Gram and didn't want her disappointment, I never went back up there.

Prue and Piper started downstairs. I whimpered but steeled myself by saying I wasn't a little girl anymore. I started leaving with Phoebe but we stopped when there was a sudden creak and the door, the attic door, creaked open on its own. Phoebe and I looked at each other and slowly started making our way into the room. Light shined from the crackling lightning in the windows, it enlighten a stand in the middle of the room where a giant book resting on top.

"What is this?" Phoebe whispered, it seemed wrong somehow to talk out loud. I looked down at the title: Book of Shadows.

"I don't know," I whispered back, remembering this book but…it had been so long ago I had forgotten what it'd look liked. Phoebe used her other hand, the arm I didn't have a death grip on, and flipped it open so somewhere near the beginning. On it was a bunch of words that looked like some kind of poem.

Together, we started to whisper words long since spoken:

_"Hear now the words of the witches_

_ The secrets we hid in the night_

_ The oldest of Gods are invoked here_

_ The great work of magic is sought_

_ In this night and in this hour_

_ I'll call upon the ancient power_

_ Bring your powers we sisters four_

_ We want the power_

_ Give us the power."_

Something seemed to…I don't know, shift? In the air. Before I can think of what that poem could have meant, Prue and Piper wandered back in, having realized we hadn't followed them. "What are you doing?" Prue asked.

"Just a little…light reading?" I tried, not believing my own self.

"We were just uh…reading an incantation in this book of shadows we found up here." Phoebe admitted.

"How did you get in here?" Piper asked.

"The door opened itself," I shrugged, not really having much of an answer for that one.

"Wait a minute, an incantation?" Piper interrupted. "What kind of incantation?"

"It's nothing really, just a silly poem in a book." I said awkwardly.

"It just said something about there being three essentials of magic: uh, timing, feeling and phases of the moon." Phoebe explained, studying the wording in the book. "If we were ever gonna do this-midnight on a full moon-is the most powerful time."

"Time for what?" I asked, not fully understanding what was going on.

"Do what?" Piper asked alongside me.

"Receive our powers." Phoebe said grinning. Say what now?

"What powers?" Piper scoffed. "Wait, our powers? You included me in this?" she demanded.

"Uh," I raised my hand slightly, remembering a line in the poem. "I may have had something to do with that too."

"No, they included all of us." Prue scowled, reading the spell from the book. "Bring your powers to we, sisters four. It's a book of witchcraft."

"Which is…awesome." I grinned, I always had this thing about witches. I was one every Halloween, no exceptions except this one year when I was four and I was forced to be a fairy princess for my school play and I was too tired to change.

"Let me see that." Piper took the book. No one noticed a man standing outside the house, a hood covering his head.

Only minutes later were the four of us finding our way down the stairs to the first floor, "Spirit boards, books of witchcraft. It figures all this freaky stuff started when you arrived and you even dragged Penny into it." Piper was complaining.

"Hey, I wasn't the one who found the spirit board." Phoebe defended herself.

"Technically, you did find the book since you were trying to open the attic door." I stated.

Phoebe nodded, "Well yeah, it told me to go to the attic so I did. Not my fault Gram had a witchcraft book up there."

"Whatever." Piper interrupted. "Besides, nothing happened. Now girls, when you did that incantation?"

Phoebe rolled her eyes, "Well, my head spun around and I vomited split pea soup. How should I know?"

"Does it really matter?" I asked. "It's not like anything happened."

"Well, everything does look the same." Piper nodded, glancing around the living room. Nobody noticed the photo in the frame on the side table. In the original picture, all four girls a few months ago were taken standing a few inches apart in front of the manor. Now, they all stood close together, side by side, as sisters.

Outside, the hooded man walked off.

The next morning, I stumbled downstairs, pulling my hair into a ponytail as I did so. I was dressed in jeans, a blue tank top with a jean jacket over it, my glasses tucked in the case in my side bag pocket. A red almost flat book sack was on my shoulder. Most of my books littered the backseat of my car.

When I came into the kitchen, I found Phoebe drinking coffee and Piper walked in as I was pouring cereal for a quick breakfast. "You're up early." Piper commented as I pulled my milk.

"I always wake up around this time." I said, starting to eat. I had one of those internal alarm clocks.

"And I never went to sleep." Phoebe said, sipping her coffee.

Piper shook her head, "Don't tell you put on a black conical hat and spent the night flying around the neighborhood on a broomstick?"

"I wish." I said. If only, that would have been fun flying around the neighborhood.

Phoebe shook her head, "Besides, the only broom I've ever had was kept in a closer beside a mop."

"Boring," I pouted. I squeezed my way onto the stairs between the two to finish my breakfast before school.

"So what were you doing?" Piper asked.

"Sleeping." I muttered.

"Reading, is Prue around?" Phoebe asked, realizing one sister was missing.

"She went to work early." Piper explained. "What were you reading."

"The book of shadows?" Phoebe explained.

I scowled, "You read it without me?" that would have been an interesting read.

Phoebe shrugged, "Well I knew you had school today. Anyway, according to the Book, one of our ancestors was a witch named Melinda Warren."

Piper shrugged and said, "And we have a cousin who's a drunk, an aunt who's manic, and a father who's invisible." Piper stood back up.

"All of which we haven't seen in years." I stated. The rest of the family wasn't exactly ever around. It was just the four of us nowadays.

"I'm serious," Phoebe followed her older sister. Having nothing better to do and liking to be in the middle of things, I followed, placing my now empty bowl in the sink. Phoebe went to explain what she had read late that night. "She practiced powers, four powers. She could move objects with her mind, see the future, stop time, and control the four main elements. Before Melinda was burned at the stake." I winched, imagining the charred flames burning someone alive. Although I had never been afraid of fire, I was always the one getting the closest to the flames, almost hypnotized by the flickering flames. "She vowed that each generation of Warren witches would become stronger and stronger, culminating in the arrival of four sisters." We left the house and started to Piper's car, she would be dropping me off at school today on her way to her interview. "Now, these sisters would be the most powerful witches the world has ever known. They're good witches and I think we're those sisters."

I shook my head, deciding to deny the whole thing. "Listen, as much as that would be so cool to be able to have those powers and be…good witches, that kind of stuff just doesn't happen in real life, let along our lives."

"Penny's right." Piper agreed. "I admit, last night was weird and unexplainable, but we're not witches and we do not have special powers besides, Gram wasn't a witch and as far as we know, neither was mom. So take that Nancy Drew." I climbed into the cars and we took off.

"We're the protectors of the innocent! We're known as the charmed ones!" Phoebe shouted after us.

I shook my head, chuckling to myself, letting slightly long bangs fall into my eyes, "Protectors of the innocent, yeah right." I leaned back in my seat to enjoy the ride.

I went to the University of San Francisco (an actual college I in no way own) it was a huge college and I used to live in the dorms here before I moved in back home. "Hey Penny!" a familiar girl called me over as I started towards classes. The girl was Cristina, a red head girl who had transferred here last year. She may be five years older than me but that didn't stop us from becoming friends. She was working on becoming a lawyer. "So how's it going moving back in with the sister's three?" she asked. She knew about my home life although she had never actually met my sisters other than a brief hello with Piper dropping me off one time.

"Not as bad as I thought it would be." I admitted, tucking my textbook under my arm. "We're adjusting with Phoebe moving in but minus Gram, it feels like the same as it did when we were kids." I decided not to mention last night, the last thing I wanted was my pretty much only friend since I was the youngest in my class to think I was a freak for believing something magical could have happened last night. Christina nodded and we headed into class.

I didn't notice a dropping flower hooked to a vine curled around the step railing begin to bloom into a beautiful pink rose.

I had no idea at that moment, Prue's boss was getting ink in the face with his pen.

"She's a slut," a familiar voice laughed as I walked past the large fountain in the courtyard, drinking my coffee during my lunch. The voice belonged to college senior Bethany, a smartass who hated me because her boyfriend decided he wanted me. That relationship only lasted a week when I realized he wanted something I wasn't about to give him so he went crawling back to Bethany. Literally, he went crawling because I kicked him in a spot a boy does not want to be kicked when he tried to force it. I just had bad luck with guys.

"Did you hear me?" Bethany demanded, her and her two clones stood behind her, cutting me off.

I nodded, sipping my coffee, "Yeah, I heard you. I just decided long ago you weren't worth my time." I wasn't being mean, I was being honest. She was just like the popular high school girl who slept with every guy and made fun of everyone else so she would feel superior.

I walked passed her, ignoring her shrieks. I didn't turn as I heard something else. If I had, I would have seen the fountain water practically explode, covering the three girls.

I had no idea at that moment, Piper was freezing her interviewer.

A few hours later, I was leaving school. Piper may drive me to school but I always walked home. It was great exercise and I knew Piper had to work later than my school get out as does Prue. I guess Phoebe could get me now, only she had a bike and I hadn't rode on the handlebars since I was sixteen and we decided I was too big for it when we ended up crashing into a tree. That got me my first broken arm.

"Leave me alone, "Derek." I said irritated, ignoring the boy following me.

"Come on, let's go to that bar on the other side of town and have some fun. Or would you prefer going to my house?" Derek seemed to sneer, trying to look cool.

"I don't want you nor have I ever wanted you. Now get lost," I snarled. He was my boyfriend for two months when I was eighteen and I found out he was cheating on me for one month and three weeks of those. Holding faithful for barely a week had to be some kind of record or something. And he wasn't actually faithful. He still checked out every girl in a five foot radius over the age of fifteen since I met him. He was only in this college because daddy paid for it for him.

I kept walking and was relieved when he didn't follow. I didn't realize that a small gust of wind, almost like a mini few inch tall tornado, almost unnoticeable, had hooked onto his ankle, sending him sprawling across the ground.

I had no idea at that moment Prue's boss was being chocked by his own tie just moment's after she left.

I was halfway home when I stopped and decided to walk by the park. I always enjoyed walking through the park after school when I was a kid and I hadn't done it lately. I had nothing holding me back or waiting for me at home so I decided to walk.

I smiled at all the young children running around, playing with balls or in the sandbox. Little boys were trying to throw a football and little girls were trying to braid their sister's hair only to get it nodded. Parent's sat on the sidelines on benches, watching their children or reading books.

I stopped when I reached a bush on the edge of the park I was passing. I stared down at it's leafy exterior, was it me or did it look like something was caught…in the branches? I bet down reaching for the sparkling, feeling the heat of the sun of my back.

I pulled back with a squeal of surprise as the bush suddenly caught fire, feeling a burn graze my hand. Not like it had been burnt but more like…it had sent the flames there, as if it came from my hand. "Oh my god, oh my god, this cannot be happening." I muttered, reaching for the flames as if they would disappear.

"Don't touch that!" a strong voice reprimanded me. I was pulled away by strong hands gripping my waist. I looked up surprise. It was a man about half a foot taller than me. He had pale skin, not sickly but not tan either. His eyes were a dark blue and his hair was a messy dirty blonde. He was clearly strong with muscles but he wasn't exactly overly buff either, more lean. He wore a plain white t-shirt tucked into his dirt knee scraped pants and brown work boots.

The bush kept burning behind me.

At that moment, Phoebe was getting ran over by the car, saving two pre-teen boys riding on skateboards.


	3. The Wiccan Way: The Power of Four

The Wiccan Way: The Power of Four:

Penny Halliwell walked into the hospital with purpose thinking about what happened barely an hour before.

_"What were you thinking, you could have been burnt." The blonde haired stranger demanded, letting her go. Penny almost wished he hadn't, she'd never had a guy hold her so protectively. But she shook off the thought, this was just a guy she would probably never see again. He looked older than her but only about five or so years._

_ "I…I didn't, I mean…" Penny started stuttering, unsure what to say. How could she explain that she was actually starting to believe her older sister, Phoebe was right about them being able to do witchcraft._

_ The guy shook his head in disbelief, but shrugged, an unusual kindness I didn't usually see in guys my age, "Whatever, just don't do something like that again. You could hurt yourself or even scar your flesh when touching something burning like that. Although I don't know how that bush suddenly caught on fire like that." He looked at me in confusion._

_ I shook the confusion from my head, realizing if this was truly happening, then nobody could know. "Maybe…maybe somebody threw a cigarette bud in earlier." I said quickly, having seen it happen when I was younger._

_ "Maybe," he agreed. He looked down at me and opened his mouth to say something but was caught off by my cell ringing in my book bag._

_ "Hold that thought," I dug my phone out of my bag and answered the unfamiliar number._

_ "Hello, is this Penelope Halliwell?" a female voice questioned._

_ "This is she." I nodded, wondering what this was about._

_ "Hello, I'm a nurse from general hospital. I'm calling on behalf of your uh… (I heard the ruffling of papers) sister, Phoebe."_

_ Hospital and Phoebe in the same sentence was never a good this. I felt my heart stop. "Ohmigod, is she alright?" I asked, starting to panic. "What happened?"_

_ "She'll be alright, she was hit by a car. She's getting x-rayed right now but there doesn't seem to be any serious damage. We were just informing the family." She hung up and I shoved my phone in my bag. I took off without a second thought, ignoring the fact that the hospital was miles away on the other side of town in the opposite direction of the house I had been heading for._

_ "Hey, I didn't get your name!" the blonde guy shouted after me._

_ "Penny!" I called over my shoulder, not sure why I had given him my name. Oh well, it's not like he'll ever be able to track me down in case he was a psychopath. There had to be more Penny's in town and it wasn't like it was exactly a small town. The city was huge, you could meet someone and odds were ten to one if you just randomly bumped into them in the streets again._

I chugged down my second water, sitting at the bar in a restaurant we frequently visited. "This is why you shouldn't run nonstop for five miles, Penny." Prue shook her head at me.

"Well I didn't have a car and you can't blame me for panicking." I scowled, taking in a large breath of air, finally cooling down from my run. Phoebe sat next to me, completely fine. It was a lucky break.

"Next time, don't run like that; find a friend for a ride or walk it." Phoebe suggested.

I scowled, "So there's going to be a next time?" Phoebe shook her head laughing.

"Anyway," Prue got us back on track. "What was this about 'The Charmed Ones?' it's insane!"

"Are you telling me that nothing strange happened to you today?" Phoebe asked. "You didn't freeze time, move anything, or control the elements?"

I half raised my hand, "Actually, I don't think a bush setting itself on fire is exactly a normal everyday occurrence for me."

"Ok," Phoebe nodded. "That settles it, I have premonitions and Penny has power over the elements."

"Not good powers if I can't control it." I muttered, imagining getting frustrated with my homework and having the paper set itself on fire.

Prue shook her head, "Roger took an exhibit away from me. Now, I think Phoebe seeing the future and Penny controlling the elements is pretty ironic."

"What does that mean?" I demanded, putting my drink down.

Prue rolled her eyes, "What I mean is Phoebe doesn't do anything for her own future and can suddenly see it. And Penny, you have always been fascinated with fire, plant life, you're not scared of heights, and you're the best swimmer I know." I shrugged, well I couldn't exactly argue with her there.

Phoebe sighed, "Even if you don't want to believe me, just once can't you trust me?"

"I believe you after what happened." I decided. Phoebe had never deliberately lied to me before. She's lied to our sisters when she was sneaking out, but never to me. So why would she start now? And if she was just trying to trick our sisters, why pull me into the trick when I could help do the trick? Besides, bushes don't set themselves on fire for the fun of it.

Prue furiously denied the whole thing, "Phoebe, Penelope," she uses my full name when she gets frustrated. "I do not have special powers. Now, where is the cream?" I was about to point it out when the cream suddenly moved by itself, filling her coffee cup. I didn't even bat an eye at the moving cream shaker bottle.

"Really? That looked pretty special to me." Phoebe stated, looking cool as a cucumber.

"Well that's one more witch power located in which sister." I smirked. "Or should I say _witch _sister."

"This cannot be happening." Prue ignored my jab and shook her head. "So that means, um…I can move things with my mind."

"With how much you hold inside, you should be a lethal weapon by now." Phoebe stated.

"I think we all could be. We're not exactly normal girls anymore." I stated, sipping my drink.

Prue decided to do what she always did when things got too bad, "I don't believe it." We ignored her.

"So does that mean Piper…" Piper was still at her interview last I checked.

Phoebe nodded, "That must mean that Piper can freeze time." Prue suddenly chugged her alcoholic drink, "Are you okay?"

"No I'm not okay." Prue decided. "You turned me into a witch."

I shook my head, "You can't blame Phoebe for that one."

"I agree." Phoebe nodded. "I didn't make us witches, we were all born witches and I think we better start dealing with it." We paid the check and started down the street towards home.

"Ok, first step, how do we deal with it?" I asked, adjusting my bag on my shoulder.

So Phoebe explained, "When I was looking through the Book of Shadows, I saw these wood carvings. They looked like something out of a bosch painting, all these terrifying images of four women battling different incarnations of evil."

Prue scoffed, "Evil fighting evil, that's a twist."

"I don't believing having powers would automatically make someone evil." I defended. I was a witch now and if witches were evil, then I was going to be different. I didn't want to use these so called new powers to force my will over others.

"Actually," Phoebe said. "A witch can be either good or evil. A good witch follows the wiccan rede, 'An it harm none, do what ye will'. A bad witch or a warlock has but one goal: to kill good witches and retain their powers. Unfortunately, they look like regular people. They could be anyone, anywhere."

"So these…warlocks, are going to be coming after us?" I asked, trying to understand this new world I was suddenly thrown into.

"Wait, why would they want anything to do with us?" Prue questioned.

Phoebe, being the one who actually read the book, started to explain again, "Well, in the first wood carving, they were in the slumber but in the second one, they were battling some kind of warlock. I think as long as we were in the dark about our powers, we were safe. Not anymore."

"Great," I groaned. "More guys trying to get on my bad side."

We stopped halfway home and only because Prue decided she needed aspirin we didn't have at home so we walked into a pharmacy. It was your everyday pharmacy, a bunch of shelves filled with different products for sale. "Excuse me, where do you keep the aspirin?" Prue asked the guy at the counter ringing someone else up.

"Aisle three." The pharmacist guy answered and I followed my sisters to aisle three. Prue seemed to get more and more frustrated the further into the aisle we went.

Phoebe continued talking, trying to help her sister, "You now, I'm not afraid of our powers."

I smiled and resisted the childish impulse to grab my bigger sister's hand for some kind of comfort, "Actually, I don't think I'm scared either." I commented. It was…kind of cool, to have this big secret nobody else knew about.

Phoebe smiled at me, "Besides, everyone inherits something from their family, right?" Phoebe suggested.

Prue shook her head, glancing through the products for her aspirin. "Yeah, money, antiques, a strong disposition. That's what normal people inherit."

"Who wants to be normal?" Phoebe and I said. We looked at each other and burst out laughing as we hadn't done that in years. We used to pretend we were twins when we were little, despite the single year age difference. It was fun freaking strangers out with the 'twin' talk.

Prue rolled her eyes, "I want to be normal. I want my life to be…you know, isn't this aisle three!" Prue snarled when she couldn't find her aspirin.

"I think it kinda is." I stated, pointing to the giant red 3 on the white board hanging above us at the end of the aisle.

Phoebe sighed, "Well we can't change what happened. We can't undo our destiny." Destiny? What was destiny anyway? What was my destiny? What did the future hold for me? Heck, I was beginning to doubt I'd ever find love or have kids with the way my romantic history was going. At least Piper had found someone she had fallen in love with.

"Do you see any aspirin?" Prue demanded, still trying to find it.

"I see chamomile tea." Phoebe nodded at the box. It was another way to cure headaches. Gram would give them some, although it hadn't worked nearly as well as it had when she was alive. Maybe she added something to it, I didn't know.

"Ooh, I want some." I decided, picking up the box. Who knows, it may be useful. And besides, it was a good drink.

Prue said, "Look, I just found out that I'm a witch, that my three younger sisters are witches, and that we have powers that will apparently unleash all forms of evil. Evil that is apparently going to come looking for us. So excuse me, but I'm not exactly in a homeopathic mood right now."

"Then move your headache out of your mind?" Phoebe suggested.

"Would that actually work?" I asked.

Prue glared at us but was snapped out of it when a bottle of aspirin suddenly flew off the shelf and into her hand. Phoebe nodded when she got it, "You move things when you're upset."

Prue protested loudly, "This is ridiculous! I thought that you landed on your arm, not your head."

"Her head is just fine, this is actually happening." I stated.

"You don't believe us?" Phoebe guessed.

"Of course I don't believe you!" Prue exclaimed.

Phoebe and I looked at each other and smirked, "Rogggeeerrrr," we sung. A few more bottles of aspirin flew off the shelf. Phoebe continued this time, "Now let's talk about dad and see what happens."

"He's dead, girls." Prue said firmly.

"Not actually dead." I stated.

"He moved to New York and last I checked, he's still very much alive." Phoebe said.

"He isn't to me." Prue stated. "He died the day he left mum."

"Well I guess he can't exactly be that nice a guy since he left mom." I said. Dad was always a soft spot for me, not sure if I should hate him or not. After all, he did leave mom for some unexplainable reason.

Phoebe started to sing 'dad, dad, dad' over and over again with hopes of riling Prue up. It clearly worked when half the bottles on the shelf flung off and scattered across the floor. I bit my lip to stop from laughing.

"The Book of Shadows said our powers would grow." Phoebe explained grinning.

"Grow to what?" Prue joked. The three sisters started to laugh.

We made it to Halliwell manor alright and Prue put her aspirin away, turned out she didn't need it anymore. I dropped my bag by the door, knowing I would just forget it if I left it in my room. Phoebe answered the red beeping answering machine. "Prue, its Roger. I've decided to let you come back to talk. Seriously, let's talk buy."

I shook my head, pulling my hair from its ponytail. "Man, I'm glad Prue dumped that moron." He always acted stuck up around me, like he was better than everyone else.

"Aren't we all," Phoebe agreed.

Prue walked back in holding a hairless pink cat. "Where'd the cat come from?" I said surprised. Last I checked, we didn't have a cat although I always wanted one, I grew out of that dream when I was fifteen.

"Well, unless Piper turned into the cat since she's not home, the cat probably climbed in through a window someone forgot to close. Did Piper leave a message."

"She's probably out with Jeremy." Phoebe shrugged.

"But your jerk of an ex-boyfriend called." I informed her.

"I heard." Prue scowled, obviously not liking the thought of him calling here.

Then the front door flew open and Piper ran in looking panicked, slamming and locking the door. I was honestly worried, never having seen Piper looked so freaked. "Oh my god, what is it? What's wrong?" apparently, Prue hadn't either.

Piper took a deep breath, trying to calm herself, "Look the doors, check the windows. We don't have a lot of time."

"What, did someone attack you or something?" I asked worried, seeing her flustered expression.

Piper shook her head but then nodded and turned to Phoebe, "Phoebe, in the Book of Shadows, did it say how to get rid of a…" she stopped, not sure what to call it.

"Warlock?" Phoebe guessed.

"Oh my god." Prue muttered and I felt the same.

"I can't believe we've only been witches for one day and we've already got warlocks on us." I bit back a whimper.

"I'm calling the cops." Prue decided as Phoebe ran upstairs for the book. I snatched the phone from her hand before she could dial the number. "Hey!" she protested. "Give that back!"

"Will you think for a minute." I suggested, putting the phone back where it went.

Piper said, "Penny's right, you can't exactly tell them we're witches and that some freak with powers beyond comprehension is trying to kill us. Even if the cops did come, they'd be no match for Jeremy ad we'd be next."

I shook my head, "Forget that. If they showed up, we'd just be carted off to the nearest mental hospital if we tried telling them this."

Phoebe called from the top of the stairs, "I found the answer, come on!"

I ran after my older sisters, following in the back up to the attic. It took only minutes of us stumbling around panicked to get everything we needed together. The four of us sat in a circle cross legged around a low table. Candles were placed in a circle on the table. Prue nodded, looking at our handy work, "Okay, we've placed the nine candles anointed with oil and spices in a circle."

"Wait," Piper interrupted. "I only count eight."

"You forgot this one." Phoebe held up a birthday candle.

"A birthday candle?" Piper asked, not believing that was really all they had.

"It was the only one I could find!" I defended myself, taking the candle and putting it back in the circle.

Prue interrupted us, "Now we just need the poppet." She stated.

"Got it," Piper nodded, working on it. Phoebe held the birthday candle out to me. I grinned eagerly and pointed my finger at the candle. I focused and felt heat grow at the tip of my finger. A flame just bigger than what I needed flew from the fingertip to the candle step. Phoebe nodded, happy to see my _magic _and tossed it into the bowl in the center.

"Get ready to cast the spell." Prue said. Prue finally admitted to herself that they were actually witches. After all, it wasn't everyday a warlock attacked her sister, her other sister saw the future, and her youngest sister made fire come out of her bare hand.

"Okay, first I'll make it stronger." Piper grabbed a rose I grew in two seconds in the garden and pressed it onto the top of the poppet. _:_

_ "Your love will wither and depart_

_ From my life and my heart_

_ Let me be, Jeremy_

_ And go away forever." _

She dropped the poppet into the bowl. "Okay, the spell's complete."

"Let's hope it works." Prue said. The poppet and rose started to burn, bursting into flames. And for once, I wasn't the one to set it on fire today. When the flower and poppet creased to burn, we started picking up our mess. Hopefully, we wouldn't have to worry about any more warlocks. But knowing our luck, they'd probably be one tomorrow. Ugh, being a witch was going to be harder than I thought.

I was thrown from my thoughts when Phoebe exclaimed, "Wait, it didn't work!" I dropped the candles I was picking up surprised and they scattered, rolling across the floor.

"What?" Piper said surprised. Phoebe was clutching the bowl we used to her chest.

Phoebe explained, "The spell, it didn't work."

"This isn't happening." I moaned, feeling my forehead wrinkle in concern.

"How do you know?" Prue asked, trying to remain calm.

"When I touched the pot, I had a flash. I saw Jeremy." Phoebe said.

"You touched the pot and you saw him?" Prue repeated, as if that was the weirdest thing they saw today.

"Premonitions." I realized and Phoebe nodded. "He's on his way here." We forgot the clean up and started running down the stairs. I didn't know what we were doing but I knew none of us wanted to be in this house when Jeremy decided to show up. We only got to the living room before the front door was kicked open, revealing Jeremy in the doorway. Piper and Phoebe screamed, I shrieked.

"Hello, ladies!" Jeremy laughed. Piper pulled me behind her as Prue put her arms in front of Piper and Phoebe, doing the older protective sister deal. The four of us slowly walked backwards, as if trying to put what distance we could between them. Prue apparently tested out her control on her new powers by mentally throwing Jeremy against the wall.

"Piper, Phoebe, Penny, get out of here now!" Prue warned. I was the first one up the stairs followed by my two older sisters. We made it to the attic. Prue squeezed in seconds later and we quickly used what feminine strength we had to push a dresser against the door. We may have blocked our exit but we also blocked his entrance.

"Phoebe, you're right, our powers are growing." Prue said.

"Put as many things against the wall as you can." Piper called. Taking a breath, I raised my hands. A few chairs scattered against the wall was pushed into the air by the wind, stacking against the door and on the dresser. For a beginner, I think I was starting to learn how these powers work.

"Take me now, Prue!" Jeremy shouted from outside the door. "My powers are stronger than yours." He started to laugh, a creepy irritating yet chilling laugh that sent chills of fear down my spine. "Do you think a couple chairs will stop me?" the chairs I had stacked were suddenly flung back into their original places. "Do you think a dresser will stop me?" the dresser slid by itself out of the way and it was clear that Prue didn't do it. "Have you witches figured it out yet? Nothing, nothing can keep us away!" he laughed again.

"What do we do? We're trapped." Piper whimpered.

"We're dead." I shivered. Right when I finished those words, the door cracked and then it exploded open. Jeremy stood in the doorway and my scream was mixed in with my sisters.

Prue got a brilliant idea, proving she was indeed the smartest career woman of the Halliwell sisters, "Come on, we'll face him together. Do you remember the spirit board?"

"The inscription on the back." Piper realized.

I gasped, remembering the words I have traced and read over and over again, "The power of four."

Prue nodded, "The power of four will set us free." A circle of fire suddenly encircled us. I gasped, surprised when the fire felt actual head, enough to burn me. Usually, the fire was just warm, an almost welcoming feeling. This fire spelt nothing but death and distraction for all those who come to it. I clutched onto Piper's hand, who clutched onto Prue's, who clutched onto Phoebe's. "Come on, we gotta sat it together." Prue coaxed us.

I took a shuttering breath and fighting back my fear, I spoke the spell and we sisters four chanted together: _The power of four will set us free." _I kept chanting this spell, over and over again. A strong wind flew over us. This time, an element didn't scare me.

Jeremy started to scream, "I am not the only one! I am one of millions! In places you can't even imagine! In forms you would never believe! We are hell on earth!" Cracks started to appear in Jeremy and I felt no regret or pain as he exploded, shattering like glass.

"The power of four." Prue sighed. It's really something, I thought to myself, never loosening my grip on my sister's hand.

The next morning at Halliwell manor, I walked through the living room like every other morning. I stopped to see Prue smiling as she moved her finger, commanding the door to close on its own. "Looks like someone's enjoying their powers." I smirked.

"Shut up," Prue grinned. "And it's not like you're not either." I shrugged, drinking my freshly poured milk I had heated up with my own hand, just enough for warmth but not enough for scalding.

A few days passed after our first battle as witches and I found myself sitting in Quake with Phoebe and Piper. Prue was at work and I had a day off. Piper was supposed to be working since she worked here at this restaurant haven got the job earlier and Phoebe didn't have a job. "I'm going to kill him." Piper scowled deadly. I've seen that look a few times in my life on her face and I tell you each time was not pretty and worse than the last.

"Who?" Phoebe asked.

"And try not the actually kill anyone. Last thing we need is a…witchy, investigation." I stated. Although I don't think freezing time would really kill anyone. Then again she could always freeze him and then stab a knife in his ribs and be gone before anyone even knew what happened when time restarted itself.

"Chef Moore." Piper explained. "He, of the phony accent hired me and then quits to open him own place. Thank you very much." She scowled.

I shrugged, "Who am I kidding, I'd want to kill him to leaving on the spot like that."

Phoebe rolled her eyes, "Oh, come on, it's not any of the customers complaining."

"Hello," Piper protested. "I am not a restaurant tour. I'm a chef. I have no idea what I am doing. Are you wearing my dress?"

I shook my head, sipping at my drink, "She finds one thing to complain about…are those my shoes?" I asked, looking at the small black heels Phoebe tauntingly showed me.

"Hey Britney." Phoebe quickly said as a familiar blond Piper's age walked up. "Oooh, I love that tattoo."

"Thanks." Britney grinned, showing off an angel tattoo on the back of her hand. It was actually kinda pretty.

Phoebe pointed at her own hand, "I thought it was illegal to get them on your hand because of the veins."

Britney nodded, "In the states, yeah, I got it down in Tahiti." Tahiti? I wondered if we could ever go there, maybe a vacation or something in the nearby future. It was only fair to get away from the demons of home. Britney handed Piper a wad of cash, "Keep the change, Piper. I gotta jam."

"Okay, say hi to Max." Piper waved.

As soon as she left, I groaned, "Everybody has a boyfriend except me."

"We don't have boyfriends." Phoebe protested.

"Besides, it's not like boys don't like you." Piper said, counting the money.

"Yeah, boys who are man-sluts." I moaned. Piper called to a waitress about a table but I ignored it and sipped my drink down. At least out of the few dresses I had, I managed to get in a pretty black spaghetti strapped one and strappy black heels before Phoebe raided my closet.

Phoebe quickly said, "Okay, see that poster boy to your left?" the 'poster boy' was a handsome guy I noticed that kept glancing over here every few seconds. More specifically, Phoebe.

"I approve." Piper nodded.

"So who is he?" I asked.

Phoebe said, "His name is Alec and he's about to come over and ask if he could buy me a martini." She grinned.

"How do you know?" Piper asked but I had a feeling. I had seen her suddenly spaced out familiar look when she grabbed her mostly emptied glass of martini.

Phoebe glanced around. "Let's just say I saw the age old problem of who approaches who. I had a little premonition.

"What?" Piper said surprised. "Phoebe you are not supposed to use your powers, we agreed."

"That's hardly fair." I protested. "Phoebe can't control her power if it happens in her head when she touches something. At least we can control when to use ours…sometimes." I said, noticing my second glass, water in this one, had filled up by itself again. Looks like I didn't need to order anymore when I needed it.

"Besides, only you and Prue agreed." Phoebe said. "Penny and I didn't have a say."

"So we said nothing but we never agreed." I stated.

Piper shook her head, "The whole point is none of us can control our powers. I could panic and freeze the entire restaurant!" then Phoebe shushed her, her new guy was coming over.


End file.
